The Cure
by pmreid
Summary: Alanis and her faithful dog set out to the DC ruins in search for a cure to reverse the effects of ghoulism.


Alanis reloaded her submachine gun as she sprinted in between the ruined rubble of the downtown DC ruins. She peered over the wall in front of her and scanned the area; it was clear of super mutants. Keeping one finger on the volume adjustment on her battered radio and the other poised on the trigger of her gun, she crouched and ran towards the next half-broken building, ears pricked for the sounds of any nearby enemies. Alanis had no companion except her dog, Jess, which followed silently, its small paws pattering the ground. Jess had been one of the few dogs that hadn't tried to rip Alanis' head off when she had first seen her. The shabby mongrel had been Alanis' dear friend for a long time, and she had trained her to be stealthy as well as deadly. The dog trotted after Alanis through the ruins, panting quietly, shaking off excess dust from its shaggy mane every so often.

The radio at Alanis' hip tuned into some old song; the notes tinkled in a scattered, static nonsense, and for a moment Alanis felt slight comfort in the normality of the tune. It faded into silence, before the familiar voice of Three Dog, Galaxy News Radio's famous DJ, droned from the radio, describing the latest adventures of 'that Vault kid'.  
Alanis groaned and turned the volume down. She was tired of hearing about this 'vault dweller'. He was just another wasteland asshole who happened to do a good deed now and then. Though most get their brains blown out before they get the chance to be called a hero, Alanis thought.  
She turned a corner of a bleak, half-tumbled tower, and heard a loud beeping beneath her. "Ah, crap," had barely escaped her lips before the frag mine beneath her feet exploded and she gave a shout of pain. "Damn it!" she hissed, gripping her leg where a violent burning sensation seared up her calf. Biting her lip to stop herself screaming, she thrust her hand into her bag, pulled out a stimpack and quickly injected it into her thigh, sighing with relief as the pain subsided slightly. Jess had avoided the explosion, and gave Alanis' hand a comforting lick. Alanis forced a smile and hugged the dog to her, biting back tears.

Heavy, uneven footsteps suddenly thundered from around the corner and she struggled to her feet. Jess jumped up and started barking angrily. "Easy, girl," Alanis whispered, and pointed her gun at the corner from where the footsteps came. The ugly, misshapen figure of a super mutant appeared, its towering form and yellowish skin barely feet from her and Jess, clutching a hunting rifle. "Time to die!" it screamed, baring uneven, grey teeth, raising its gun. Alanis was faster; she fired and a quick shower of bullets fired into the monsters' face and it fell back with a pained gurgle. Jess gave a deep, menacing growl - more of the mutants were coming; crouching and backing into the wall, Alanis saw an old, rusty door not far ahead and edged towards it, her gun pointed at the nearby corner, ready to fire if another super mutant appeared. Alanis had been avoiding entering any buildings in DC so far in case they were crawling with mutants or raiders, but she could take the chance. "You're dead!" she heard another mutant scream, its voice dangerously close. Quickly, she turned the handle and the door opened with a dull creak; Jess ran between her legs and Alanis squeezed inside after her, falling to the floor and kicking it shut, hardly daring to breathe. It was barely a few seconds before she heard the heavy footsteps pass the door and eventually die away.

Jess gently butted Alanis with her head and whined softly. Alanis slowly got to her feet. The room was too dark to see anything, but she could feel steep, descending stone steps. Feeling with her hands and feet, she edged down them, her heart thumping in anticipation and fear.  
She felt her way down eleven steps before her sharp eyes suddenly caught the reflection of a dim light off the surface of a small rock. She slowly lowered herself to her knees and ran her hand over the rough surface. Tied to the rock was a thin rope, and her fingers ran along it until she found it attached to another rock on her left. A tripwire. So someone was here after all. But raiders, slavers, or a wastelander, she couldn't tell. Not mutants, though. Mutants didn't set traps.

Jess suddenly gave a loud growl and a voice broke the otherwise silent room.  
"Hold it right there,"  
Alanis heard the click of a loaded gun, and froze. Slowly her eyes travelled upward, and found herself staring into the barrel of a combat shotgun. Her fear was momentarily relieved by the fact that it wasn't a mutant.  
"All right," she said, slowly raising her hands. "Don't shoot,"  
"Get up," said the voice. It was deep and harsh, and the gun didn't move off her face for a second. Alanis rose to her feet, her hands up. A man came out of the shadows and disarmed the trip wire, gesturing with the gun for her to go to the far wall. "Come on, Jess," Alanis muttered, grabbing the dogs collar and pulling her to the other side of the room.

"What are you doing here?" asked the man. He wore an eyepatch, his remaining eye cold and fixed on Alanis' face, a dirty bandana wrapped round his head and a half-burnt cigarette between his teeth. Jess moved in front of Alanis, a deep growl rumbling from her throat.  
"Easy, girl," said Alanis. "We were getting away from the mutants," she said. "I came here by accident."  
The man looked her up and down, and then lowered his weapon. "Can never be too careful," he said. "Don't try anything. I'm watching you both,"  
He reached behind him and pulled on a large switch. Light flooded the room; it seemed to be a storeroom, filled with guns and armour and several first aid boxes piled onto another on the tall desk beside them. "What are you doing in DC?" he asked, sitting on the seat and taking a drag of his cigarette. "No one comes here by accident."  
Alanis lowered her hands uneasily, but didn't move. "I'm looking for something," she said.  
Smirking slightly, he cocked his head and looked at her questioningly. "I'm looking for a cure," she said. "It's… it's a reverse effect for ghouls. I heard it's in the city. I was heading here when a mine set off and the mutants started following me. That's all."  
The man gestured to a nearby seat and Alanis took it. Jess sat between Alanis' knees, resting her head on her lap. "Let me take a look at that," he said, nodding at her injured leg. Jess gave a violent bark when he tried to approach her.  
"She doesn't trust you," said Alanis, clutching onto Jess's collar.  
"I could have shot you by now, but I didn't," said the man. "I'm not going to hurt you. I've got some bandages, now let me see that leg,"  
Alanis hesitated, then rested her leg on a nearby chair. Most of her armour on the leg had been burnt away, and blood and raw skin lay underneath it. She winced as he placed his hands round her leg, examining the wound. "You'd be best getting out of here," he said.  
"I'm not leaving without the cure," said Alanis. The man gave a low snort, then went to one of the first aid boxes, and took out some bandages and a stimpack. "What's your name, kid?" he asked.  
"Alanis," said Alanis.  
"Right. Matt."  
Matt dabbed the bandage into some clear liquid and wrapped it round the burn, making it sting horribly for a moment. "Thanks," she muttered.  
Matt nodded, and got to his feet. "There was a cure here, but I don't know if it's still there," he said. "The mutants have ransacked everything in this city. If I were you, I'd go home."  
"I need it," Alanis persisted. "It's for my brother. He became a ghoul ten years ago. Gets abused and outcast wherever he goes, even after making his fortune as a repairman. All he wants is a normal life, and to keep himself and his little girl safe. I promised I'd get the cure for him so he can live in Tenpenny Tower with her."  
"All right, all right," Matt said impatiently. His eyes flitted from Alanis' face to her wound, and then to the dog, which still uttered a low growl. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "I can take you to it," he said. "But it's dangerous."  
"You can?" she said eagerly. "Please, Matt. I need it. I'll pay you any price,"  
"Get some sleep for now," he replied, and gestured to a nearby mattress. "There's no point rushing off anywhere now, not when there are mutants around and you can barely walk. We'll set off at dawn, but don't say I didn't warn you."

Alanis loaded her gun as they opened the door to DC, poised for any sound of mutants. She followed Matt through it, and the sun blazed down on them, illuminating the pale, battered walls of DC. Sneaking through spaces between buildings, they reached a road where rusty, beaten up cars and bits of building lay scattered around the broken road. "No mutants here," Matt muttered, hugging his shotgun to his chest as they crept up the road, flattening themselves against the wall as they went. Alanis' radio crackled slightly; she always left it on, waiting for any news her brother may have for her.  
"Turn that thing off," Matt whispered. "We're getting close,"  
Alanis hesitated, then switched it off. It wasn't long before they arrived at what used to be a bridge; the middle part of it had been destroyed and the rubble sat amongst three broken buses, an old, rickety ramp leading up to the top of it.

"Hey, we're here," Matt said, but he wasn't talking to Alanis. Instead he shouted it, strolling almost casually toward the ramp. Jess suddenly started to bark loudly, whining in between growls, and Alanis' heart filled with dread. It was then that Alanis saw it – people were appearing on top of the bridge, from behind the buses, and at the windows around them, seven or eight in total. Matt grinned wickedly. "Another one for the collection," he mocked.  
"Nice work," said another voice, and a woman jumped out of the bus on the right, smiling triumphantly as she looked at Alanis, hands on her hips. "Young, healthy, strong," she said, "six hundred caps should do it,"  
"What the hell is going on?" Alanis said angrily, gripping her gun.  
"You walked right into our trap," Matt said, as if it was obvious. "And now you'll make an excellent slave."  
"The cure?" Alanis demanded, her hands shaking. "It doesn't exist?"  
"Oh, it exists," Matt grinned. "But the Enclave offered a very attractive price for it. Much more than a wasteland mutt could offer."

He suddenly raised a large, ugly-looking gun and pointed it straight at her, and Alanis dived behind a nearby pile of rubble. Gunshots echoed through the air and hit the wall protecting her, dust and shrapnel flying all around her. Jess lay beside her; she seemed unhurt, and kept growling and barking loudly. Alanis flattened to the floor, anger and frustration building inside her. She should have known never to trust a stranger from the wasteland. And they were slavers… this was worse than she could have guessed…  
"Don't kill her!" she heard the woman scream. "Get her with the mesmetron!"  
"Come on, Jess," Alanis whispered, and she painfully got to her feet and sprinted towards a nearby building, ignoring the stabbing pain in her leg. A large, blue beam of light missed her left ear by inches; she dived behind a half-broken wall and crouched there, gripping her submachine gun, her teeth bared, sweat tingling on her forehead, Jess shivering beside her. Alanis heard distant shouting, and then some quickened footsteps. She pointed her gun round the corner and shot; she heard a loud groan as her bullets hit the incoming slaver.

"Get her!" the woman cried.  
Pulling a frag grenade from her belt, Alanis bid her time, clutching at Jess to stop her running out to the enemies. Six or seven pairs of steps were running towards her. With her teeth she pulled out the ring, threw the grenade over her shoulder, and crouched to the ground. A satisfying explosion rang through the air and she gingerly stole a look behind the wall – a cloud of dust and fallen bodies lay amongst the ruined cars. Then a silence greeted her and she counted the bodies – she couldn't see Matt's body anywhere…  
She began to crawl towards where Matt had been; she had to get the cure. Slowly she edged towards the buses, her hand poised on the trigger. Crouching next to a car, she reloaded, her heart pounding with excitement.  
A bullet suddenly flew past her head and she shot blindly; the dust disintegrated and Matt stood there with his shotgun. He seemed to be the only one left.  
"Tough luck, kid," he said, and fired.  
But the gun was out of shells; he pulled the trigger again and a dull click greeted him. "You're the one who's out of luck," said Alanis, pointing the submachine gun at him, running over the car until she was a few feet from him. "Now give me the cure, you stinking traitor."  
Matt glared at her, and took a small, glass vial from his pocket. Not taking her eyes off his face, she grabbed the vial.

"You inject it into your skin," said Matt. "It heals you within the hour,"  
"If it's a fake, I'll know," said Alanis. She bent down and pulled a string necklace from her neck. She took the vial and attached it to the necklace, then tied it round Jess's neck. "Take this to Harvey, Jess," she said softly. The dog gave a loud bark and bounded up the ramp behind them and out of sight.  
Alanis turned the dial on the radio and it crackled loudly. "Harvey?"  
"I'm here, sis," said Harvey.  
"Jess is on her way with the cure. Let me know when you get it. You're sure it's safe?" she added to Matt, who knelt on the floor, his hands above his head. "If it's not, I'll blow your brains out," she hissed, her gun aiming right between his eyes.  
"Yes, it's safe," he said gruffly.  
Alanis sat down, not moving her gun. "Wouldn't really have put you down as the slaver type," she said coldly.  
"Survival of the fittest, kid," he grunted.  
She gave a snort. "What the hell is this thing, anyway?" she asked, picking up the large, grey gun that Matt had pointed at her.  
"Mesmetron," he said. "If its beam hits you, your head goes all loopy and you don't know where you are or what you're doing. Makes it easier to put a slave collar on."  
Alanis gave a harsh laugh, shaking her head, and threw the mesmetron aside. "You people are sick," she said.  
"Makes a living."  
"Shut up."  
Her radio suddenly crackled. "Harvey?" she said eagerly.  
"It works!" an excited voice said. "I'm changing! My skin... my voice… sis, thank you! Thank you so much! I'll get Sally and we'll go straight to Tenpenny Tower. They're sure to let me in now. Meet me there."

"Well," said Alanis, relief flooding through her and she got to her feet. "It looks like my work here is done,"  
It was a second of clumsiness, a moment where Alanis dropped her hand ever so slightly, but Matt rolled over, grabbed the nearest gun and shot at Alanis, which hit her arm. She gave a cry of pain and fell back; another shot hit her ear and she screamed as blood spattered from her head and soaked her shoulder. Raising her gun, she pressed her finger on the trigger and the quick bullets burst forth; Matt's body shook before he fell back onto the ground, bloody wounds all over his body and his eyes empty and cold.

Alanis gasped with pain; clutching her arm, she staggered over the ramp and collapsed against a wall. "Bastard," she whispered through clenched teeth, forcing her way through the tumbled ruins towards Matt's place, cursing her own clumsiness. She reloaded her gun and crouched as she went, listening out for mutants or more slavers.  
Her radio crackled and a deep, clear voice spoke through it. "Alanis,"  
"Who is this?" said Alanis sharply, turning the volume up with her good arm.  
"It's Harvey. Isn't my voice different? This worked perfectly!" said her brother's excited voice.  
"That's great," Alanis smiled as she clutched her bleeding arm. She was leaving a trail of blood behind her, leaning against the wall as she went, her feet dragging and her heart pounding as pain shot through her body. But it wasn't long now before she'd find the door.  
"I'm nearly at Tenpenny Tower. Where are you?"  
"I…" Alanis sighed and closed her eyes. She knew if she told Hervey that she was injured, he'd probably try to rescue her and risk getting blown to pieces. "Go ahead without me and I'll catch up," she said.  
She finally managed to reach the door and opened it with her good arm. Matt had left the floodlights on and the stairs were brightly lit. She staggered down them and tried to find the first aid boxes.  
"All right, sis. We'll meet you later. Thanks again,"

Alanis dropped onto the chair, sighing with relief as she wrapped a clean bandage round her wound. She felt dizzy and nauseous. She gingerly touched her ear and cringed – it had been completely blown off.  
She laid her head on the wall next to her, tiredness washing over her. It wasn't until the dull, low notes of an old song rang from the radio at her hip that she jumped awake.  
"Way back home," the song played. "Home sweet home,"  
Alanis sighed and examined the bloody bandage round her arm. Three Dog, Galaxy News Radio's DJ, started speaking. "What's up Wastelanders? This is Three Dog!" he exclaimed. "Got some hot news for you today, just listen to this. Remember Tenpenny Tower? The tower where the rich live and the poor shelter under? Well my sources tell me that that vault kid just helped the local ghouls overrun that place. The whole tower's been taken over by old Roy Phillips and his followers, and now it's no place for humans to go. I guess Tenpenny deserved it, they had the caps and he pushed them out just because they looked like hideous zombies. Heads up, children… don't go near there. They'll tear you to shreds."

"No…" Alanis whispered. She fiddled with the radio with shaking fingers. "Harvey…"  
"Time's up, kid," said a voice in the shadows. Someone stepped towards her; covered in power armour, a shotgun pointed at her. "That cure was meant for our scientists."  
"Harvey," Alanis muttered, trying to find a signal. She had to warn him…  
A shot rang through the air and Alanis gasped; pain exploded in her stomach and she felt warm, thick liquid gush onto her lap and her hands. The radio crackled slightly. "Hello? Alanis?" said Harvey's voice.  
Alanis tried to speak but coughed up blood; her hands were a slippery with the crimson mess as she fumbled desperately with the radio. The Enclave soldier watched her struggle for a moment, then started grabbing the weapons from the shelves and stuffing them into a nearby box.  
"Alanis, you okay?" said Harvey amongst the thick static. "Alanis…?"  
Alanis could feel blackness overwhelming her vision, she could feel her own heart pounding for desperate survival as she tried to choke out any noise, to warn her brother…  
"What? No!" Harvey shouted, and she heard hisses and screams from the radio. Alanis' heart filled with dread… they'd got him…  
Her brother's dying screams filled the room as she felt anguished tears roll down her cheeks. Covered in blood, pain stabbing her entire body, she slumped back on the chair, despair overwhelming her, silently cursing the child from the vault, and cursing herself for failing. "I'm sorry," was her last miserable thought, as her eyelids closed for the last time. Blood trickled to the floor as her body lost all feeling and shadows crept into her head, her heart giving its last desperate, feeble beat.


End file.
